Loading...
Please wait, while we are loading the content...
Divergent behavioural responses of gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar) caterpillars from three different subspecies to potential host trees.
| Content Provider | Europe PMC |
|---|---|
| Author | Clavijo McCormick, Andrea Arrigo, Luca Eggenberger, Helen Mescher, Mark C. De Moraes, Consuelo M. |
| Abstract | Almost all previous work on host-plant selection by insect herbivores has focused on adult behaviour; however, immature life stages can also play an active role in host discrimination. The important forest pest Lymantria dispar (gypsy moth) has three recognised subspecies: the European, Asian, and Japanese gypsy moth. Unlike the other two subspecies, the European subspecies is characterised by a loss of female flight ability, which might impose a selective pressure on larvae to actively engage in host-plant selection. We therefore explored the interactions of early-instar larvae from laboratory colonies of each subspecies with four potential hosts of differing quality: oak, beech, maple, and pine-measuring larval survival and performance, feeding preferences, responses to host-derived odour cues, and the propensity to disperse from hosts via ballooning. Compared to larvae from the Asian and Japanese subspecies, larvae from the (American-originated) European gypsy moth colony exhibited (i) significantly lower survival on the poorest quality host (pine), (ii) an ability to discriminate among hosts via olfactory cues; and (iii) higher propensity to disperse from sub-optimal hosts. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that larvae from flightless female European Gypsy moth subspecies play a more active role in host-plant selection. |
| Journal | Scientific Reports [Sci Rep] |
| Volume Number | 9 |
| DOI | 10.1038/s41598-019-45201-3 |
| PubMed Central reference number | PMC6586621 |
| Issue Number | 1 |
| PubMed reference number | 31222054 |
| e-ISSN | 20452322 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Nature Publishing Group |
| Publisher Date | 2019-06-20 |
| Publisher Place | London |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Subject Keyword | Plant sciences Ecology Entomology |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
| Subject | Multidisciplinary |